Curiosity Killed... the Dog?

Contemplating

Sesshomaru walked under the cover of darkness through the dying trees of Inuyashas forest. Having returned from the future only scant hours prior, the inu lord found himself with much to think over.

At first, the overwhelming bouquet of scents and deafening sounds of the overpopulated city were nearly too much for him. But he was able to adjust quickly enough to focus on the energies of the land.

The Miko had mentioned the non-existence of yokai in her era, claiming them to be believed as tales of fright and nothing more. And he very nearly believed her. When he first sent out his jaiki, he found nothing.

In disbelief, he then sent out a purposeful wave of his power. This time, instead of silence, he was met with an answering wave of extremely familiar jaiki. It was then that he understood the seeming absence of all creatures deemed Paranormal, but it didn't answer his question as to what actually happened.

From what he saw, there were MILLIONS of ningen in the Mikos village alone. He couldn't fathom how they had multiplied so much in a mere five hundred years.

To get to the point that yokai were hidden among plain sight was concerning. He needed to learn more about what happens between his time and hers so that he could attempt to circumvent it. The world he felt was imbalanced and crying for help.

He needed to go back.

While Sesshomaru was contemplating the oddities of things he saw in her time, Kagome sat silently, awake by herself in Kaedes hut.

~~♡~~

While her trip home had been, what she would call a success, returning to the past, had been nothing short of stressful. She was well aware of Inuyashas' dislike of her decision to take his brother to her time.

But that was just it. Taking Sesshomaru or not was HER decision, not Inuyashas. So it didn't really matter what he thought about it. But you'd think, with the way he was acting, that she told some huge secret of his!

Kagome was used to being called things like wench or stupid when Inuyasha was upset. But the slew of verbal sewage he dumped on her within minutes of her return was uncalled for. Sesshomaru, not wanting to deal with the tantrum, had quickly and quietly retreated into the forest. Presumably, to sort out his thoughts on their little adventure.

After berating her for some imaginary offense against his leadership, the baka just took off into the forest, leaving her alone to walk back to the village.

If that wasn't enough, Miroku wouldn't let up with his hentai teasing. Shippo and Rin git into an argument over who got witch pocky flavor, Jaken somehow managed to set his robes on fire, and unsurprisingly, he blamed Kagomes return fir startling him.

Sango was attempting to lecture her about being careful around a daiyokai while Kaede just smiled to herself like she was privy to some hysterical truth no one else saw. It was madness, and she almost wished she had stayed home another night.

Regardless, after a hearty meal of bento boxes made by herself at home, Kagome managed to get everyone to settle down and rest, reminding them they would begin traveling again the next day.

Finally, alone with her thoughts, Kagome was able to breathe and try to rationalize the things she had seen. Her brain just couldn't comprehend how the terrifying stoic daiyokai she met here in the feudal era was the same male that she had just spent the last few days with alone.

He was different away from everyone else. More... open. He was willing to converse, debate, question, and learn. He didn't overreact or cause damage. He blended into her world with little complaint. Sesshomaru also had shown to be protective and hid a surprising cynical sense of humor.

Honestly, Kagome really enjoyed getting to know Sesshomaru a bit more. But she was aware that some of what he'd learned had distressed him. Not that he'd ever admit it.

She couldn't blame him either. If she was shown that everything and everyone she ever knew or cared about would be gone in what was basically a blink of an eye, she'd be having an internal crisis. Probably an external one, too.

She wondered then, if there was something she could do to help him with this discovery. Personally, Kagome felt the world she came from was unbalanced. Maybe the lack of yokai was the cause of that imbalance.

But, saving demons? Bringing balance back to the Earth's future? Was that even something she COULD help with? It was something she'd have to think over for a while. If she could come up with a plan... maybe, just maybe, the next time she went through the well, she'd see a grown Shippo waiting for her there.